


The One in Which Karkat Has A Breakdown and John Tries to Help

by Bingeblossom



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Battlefield Terra, Karkat Needs a Hug, M/M, Short One Shot, john trying to bi-pass quadrants, john wants to help, karkat doesn't want to be helped
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-03
Updated: 2019-05-03
Packaged: 2020-01-16 05:52:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 765
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18515221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bingeblossom/pseuds/Bingeblossom
Summary: This is just a snippet of something I wanted to happen in Battlefield Terra





	The One in Which Karkat Has A Breakdown and John Tries to Help

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Battlefield Terra](https://archiveofourown.org/works/365950) by [Asuka Kureru (Askerian)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Askerian/pseuds/Asuka%20Kureru). 



A tremor went through Karkats body and he winced away from you as you reach to console him. He gives you an apologetic look but you know he doesn't mean it. Your not the one he wants holding him.  
You want to hug him so bad right now. 

Taking a breath he continues pouring his heart out to you. “Zhan you don't get what it like for people to say they will die and kill for you but not even know you.” He took another deep breath before continuing, “they want you to lead them and look at you like you fix all their problems and and” he stopped with a sob, turning his head away from you, hiding his face. 

It felt like an eternity with you just sitting there not touching him, Karkat wrapping his arms around himself and curling tighter and tighter. Finally, he whispered out “ I can't be like him, Zhan, I can't do what they want me to.” You flashback to yourself at 10, crying in Dad's arms after your first mech training session. You had cried about your fears for hours with him. 

Coming back, you see how his arms tightened another notch around him and a bit of blood trails down. If this continues how it is for another minute you are going to hug him so hard and he will kill you but at this point, you don't care if he dismembers you as long as he stopped looking so broken. 

Karkat’ voice rose to a shout as he called out “ I can't be their savior Zhan, I can't! I don't want!...” before trailing off into a crude mix of alien clicks, and mispronounced English that you struggle to piece together. It breaks your heart to see him like this, all shaken and folded in on himself.

Not at all like the proud, hot-headed guy that been keeping you busy these last couple months. You realize that you haven't met this person before.  
You've met Cancer the mech pilot, Karkat the alien and Corporal Vantas the diplomat but you haven't met just Karkat. The lost soldier who can't hold the weight of his plant on his shoulders. Just like you; but at least you have family to help you carry the weight. 

Karkat doesn't seem to have anyone but this G' mzee guy and you got the feeling this wasn't a weight that Karkat could give to someone else to hold.  
Somehow Karkat manages to pull himself even tighter and the trail of blood on his arm becomes a steady flowing stream. That's it. You take your chances, pull him into your arms, and brace for impact.  
He in turn... (I don't know how to put this delicately) bucks like a wild animal and grips the hell out of your arm. A stray tear comes to your eye at the pain of his grip. It not like you weren't expecting him to do that so your strength manages to hold him, thank you Doc Lalonde and the American engineering that made you. 

The black of his eyes almost disappears and the yellows turn an orange colour, he's hissing as you now but he's not ripping his own arms to shreds or crying so you count that as a win. You try patting his back and soothing him like you’ve seen Dad do before but that somehow manages to make the bucking and hissing worse. 

The scratches he's giving you look worse than they actually are, he must realize he can’t completely lose it on you. He still knows the rules of the house but it doesn't help that the ways he's thrashing is sending your blood everywhere. If one of your ectosib's hear the pissed cat noises he's making and come in here, you don't know what’s gonna happen.  
So you stop petting and just hold him a little tighter instead of trying to console him. It works enough that he stops struggling, instead looking up at you with large, enraged eyes.

“Zhan, you stupid dumb fuck, you fucking stupid piece of shit. Let go. Now.”  
All you do is smile back at him and reply “Nope”. He lets out a frustrated grumble of more alien jumble but it’s better than the hissing by far. You slowly loosen your hold on him bit by bit as he calms down, making sure not to do anything that he’s yelled at you before for being ‘slutty’. Stupid alien prude culture. It’s perfectly ok to give your best alien bro a feel better grapple when you know he needs it.


End file.
